How Cersei Actually Died
by canadiandutchiefangirl
Summary: Just a short one-shot on how I think Cersei should have died - namely, Jaime killing her - because character development.


Jaime pushed through the crowds of King's Landing, almost as desperate as they were to enter the Red Keep. Leave it to Cersei to make a human barrier of innocents to protect herself.

_Not just herself_, an intruding thought reminded him._ Her child, _your_ child._

_She's probably lying,_ Jaime tried to reassure himself, _she's always lying._

He'd been trying to reassure himself of a lot of things lately. Namely, that not telling Brienne the truth was the right thing to do. Seeing her cry when he left almost broke him. Especially when everything had been going so _well_ between them

Jaime loved her. He knew that. But he also knew that he had to finish things with Cersei, once and for all. He had to kill the one on the Iron Throne as he had done all those years ago, for the people, for the innocents who would die if the war continued.

He managed to slip into the Red Keep before the gates were closed and hurried further in. He made his way through the old familiar hallways. Jaime tried not to think back too much. He tried to shake away the good times with his children, Tommen, Myrcella, even Joffrey had been a sweet child. Hearing them call him Uncle Jaime had always broken him a bit. But he knew they were the only good things to come from her. From Cersei.

The attack had already started from the sounds outside the keep, but perhaps he could minimize the damage if he –

Cersei appeared at the end of the hall, looking harried and afraid. She was alone.

"Cersei," he said, his voice cracking a little around her name. He hadn't spoken a word since his goodbye to Tyrion hours earlier.

She looked over, and her eyes widened. "Jaime." Her mouth formed his name, but he couldn't hear it over the noise of the battle outside. She moved towards him, as though some invisible force pulled her.

Jaime could feel it too, that connection that had always drawn him towards her.

_Your sister!_ That one part of his mind screamed, but it had been screaming that for so many years, Jaime was used to it.

Cersei stumbled into his arms. "Jaime, thank the seven." She had her hands on his chest and for a moment Jaime was stuck. Her green eyes, so similar to his own, were looking at him so desperately. He could almost believe she cared, about him, about anything.

But that was just it: she didn't care. Maybe she once had, but she had controlled him for far too long. For a moment, Brienne's eyes flashed before him, filled with tears after he had knighted her, and again when he left her.

That was love in her eyes, not whatever twisted version Cersei had.

"Where are your guards?" he asked, hoping to distract her as he reached for a dagger.

"Never mind them," she said, pulling at him. "We need to go." She froze suddenly, feeling the tip of the dagger at her back. "What are you doing, Jaime?" He was surprised to see no real fear in her eyes.

"What I used to do and should have done sooner," Jaime said, barely over a whisper. "Protected the people from a mad ruler."

"You wouldn't," she sneered. "I'm all you've got. All who'll ever have you." But she was wrong. She didn't know it, but she was. And that was all the motivation Jaime needed.

She knew him too well and realized what was coming before Jaime had a chance to act. Desperately, she added the one thing she was certain would stop him. "_We're_ all you have!"

But she had lied too many times, and Jaime plunged his dagger into Cersei's heart. "Goodbye, sister," he whispered as she died in his arms.

At last, he was free of her. At last, he could move on without something tethering him to her. Now he could go home to Brienne. He almost laughed at himself for calling that cold, bleak castle 'home,' but for now, that was true, at least while Brienne was there. She would be angry at him for leaving, and rightfully so, but hopefully, his explanation would be enough.

He didn't want to ruin things with her, because they were so _good._ She was good.

Brienne didn't try to control or manipulate him. She was honest and open and… good. She was good.

And gods know, he was pretty sure he didn't deserve her, but maybe, after today, he was closer to being deserving of her.


End file.
